Storm leveled an exasperated look at him. “Just wait.”
Nathan huffed, shoving his hands in his pockets. “Why?”
“Because you could use the fresh air.”
Nathan blew out a breath, shifting from foot to foot—but he didn’t walk away. Storm considered it a win, especially when Nathan turned and leaned against the warm grill of the car. He checked to make sure his smoke was going downwind and settled beside him, leaning just close enough for their shoulders to brush and smiling to himself when he heard Nathan’s quiet intake of breath.
“Feeling better?” he asked softly, studying Nathan’s stubbled jaw.
Nathan inhaled deeply. “Yeah. I think so.”
Storm could barely take his eyes off the human beside him, but he didn’t like that his presence had upset him so. Would Nathan have handled the morgue visit better if someone else had been with him? One of the other demons or even one of his own squad members from the guild?
With a sigh, he felt compelled to say, “I’m sorry.”
Nathan looked at him with surprise. “What? Why?”
“You said… I make you weak. If my presence at the morgue made things harder for you… I’m sorry.” The words felt strange on his tongue. He wasn’t prone to apologies or caring what anyone thought, but he didn’t want to be the reason Nathan felt unmoored. Not like that, anyway.
Nathan was quiet for a moment, and Storm sucked almost desperately at his cigarette, needing something to occupy him so he didn’t start fidgeting.
“It’s not your fault,” he finally said. “I’m glad you were there.”
Storm found that hard to believe. “Glad? Really?”
Nathan winced. “Maybe not glad.” He smiled crookedly to take the sting from the admission. “Not at first, anyway. But later, in the elevator.” He scuffed his boot on the pavement. “I would’ve felt all the same things even if you weren’t there. Maybe I would’ve been able to hide it better if I’d been with someone else, but… yeah, you were right. It might not be a bad thing to let someone else be the strong one every now and then.”
Satisfaction warmed Storm from within. This was progress, wasn’t it?
Nathan bumped their shoulders together. “Don’t look so smug.” His tone was light and teasing. Another good sign, in Storm’s opinion.
He sputtered out a laugh. “Smug? This isn’t smug.”
“What is it, then?” Nathan asked.
“I’m just… happy you trusted me that much.” He didn’t often feel this unusual heat, and it took him a moment to recognize it asembarrassment. “I hope you know you can always trust me. I’ll always keep you safe.”
The easy humor faded from Nathan’s gaze. His eyes were wide and vulnerable, and Storm resisted the urge to reach for him. Things between them were still too precarious to risk setting his progress back with an ill-timed push for more. He needed to be patient.
With a bashful smile, Nathan looked away and straightened. “I need to go inside and update the others. Are you coming?” He flushed abruptly. “In, I mean? Are you coming inside—to the meeting?”
Storm struggled hard to hide his smile. “Yeah. Lead the way, sunshine.”
Nathan’s throat bobbed. God, Storm couldn’t wait until he was allowed to touch him again.
Inside the Rink, the demons were hovering around the snack bar with bottles of beer, Shadrach and Xyra included this time. The humans were in the training area. Angela, Zachary, and Ira were in the center, striking different attack and defense poses when Luke called them out. Alex was pacing around them, correcting their forms and giving encouragement.
“Hold up!” Alex called when he spotted Storm and Nathan, and they all came over. “You’re back. How’d it go?”
Nathan glanced at him, his eyes filled with anxiety, and before he could think better of it, Storm opened his mouth and started speaking. The tension bled from Nathan’s body, like Storm had relieved him of yet another burden, and happiness bubbled up in Storm’s chest. He gave them a rundown of what they saw from the body and what the doctor told them. The bone fragments and sulfur in the stomach were the oddest thing, but the claw marks on the inside of the chest cavity and ribs weren’t exactly cheerful news, either.
“So a possessor demon tried to claw its way out of that guy?” Malachi asked, leaning against the snack bar.
“Gross,” Angela declared, dragging herself up to sit on the half-wall. “Is this what you guys talk about when we’re at school?”
“Among other things,” Malachi said with a cheeky wink, and Angela shook her head with a grin.
“Frankly, I’m baffled,” Nathan said, flapping his hands. “None of it makes any sense.”
